Do the words Asado, Fugazza, Chimichurri and Alfajores mean anything to you? If yes, congratulations! You’ve already been introduced to the magical world of South American cuisine. If no, now is the right time to delve into deliciousness. The South American cuisine is mostly inspired by European tastes, mainly Spanish and Italian. Nevertheless, the South Americans have modified the dishes in a way that now they are distinctly South American. In a land where people love to eat, finding sumptuous dishes is not a difficult feat. Being one of the world’s largest producers of beef, wheat, corn, milk, beans and soybeans, South America is a host to some of the most delectable dishes in the world. Red meat especially forms a major portion of the Argentine diet. Like any other place in the world, the cuisines found in the cities are more affected by globalisation but the rural areas still stick to idiosyncratic authentic South American cuisine.

Asado is simply barbecued meat and can be found all throughout Argentina. Other popular dishes spanning across the nation are dulce de leche, empanadas and yerba mate. Asado, the barbecued meat (mainly beef and sometimes other varieties of meat) is a national favourite and is also considered as the national dish is cooked on barbecue locally called parrilla or on open fire.

Talking about one of the most talked about sauces in Argentina, we have the recipe for chimichurri- a sauce used for marinating or basting the meat to be barbecued as well as for table service and is ridiculously easy to make. You would need:

·A bunch of fresh, flat leaf parsley

·Minced garlic- eight loaves

·3/4th cup extra virgin olive oil

·1/4th cup red wine vinegar

·Lemon juice

·Diced red onion- a tablespoon

·Black pepper

·Salt to taste

Chop up the parsley in the processor and add the rest of the ingredients and blend to get the sauce. The sauce can be used as an accompaniment with your everyday dishes, as a dip along with bread, as marinating base for grilled chicken or for your asado.

The South Americans also include many breaded dishes in their meals. They have adopted the Italian delicacies like pizza and focaccia but have made several changes to them so s to make them perceptibly different from their Italian cousins. Argentineans have a special soft corner for homemade food. They’ve also been making breads and pastas at home for special occasions. A few other favourite dishes of Argentina include oven baked sweet plantains, churros, zuchinni pie, pastel de papa, plantain soup etc.